Every film begins with a story and storytelling in the filmmaking process is the essence of the New York State Writers Institute’s Albany Film Festival planned for Saturday, March 28, 2026.
The Albany Film Festival is accepting submissions for its short film contest until January 30, 2026. Submissions must have a connection to New York State and be 25 minutes or less. Entry is via FilmFreeway. Cash prizes are awarded.
The Festival draws thousands of film lovers of all ages and help to highlight the work of alumni, local/regional filmmakers, and student filmmakers from across the Capital Region.
This annual spring event hosts filmmakers and screen films that explore the craft of diverse storytelling in cinema, foster a deeper understanding of social justice and celebrate the human experience in all its dimensions.
The Festival includes in-depth panel discussions with writers, screenwriters, filmmakers and film industry professionals, film critics and authors who have adapted their books into films. The program provides an intensive immersion into the intersection between writing and filmmaking.
Full-length and short film screenings of new work from aspiring student filmmakers to acclaimed directors will be shown, along with conversations and Q&As that encourage audience participation. Classic films will also be part of the Festival, augmenting the Writers Institute’s long-running and highly regarded Classic Film Series.
The forum for the Festival is the University at Albany, an academic institution that is one of the most diverse public research universities in the country, with over 17,000 undergraduate and graduate students.
Since 1983, the Writers Institute has been the place where readers, writers and filmmakers meet. New York Almanack founder and editor John Warren, a former filmmaker who has been with the Institute for nearly 20 years, hosts the short film contest.
Learn more at the Film Festival’s submission page.
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